


Frozen

by bongvelys



Category: Golden Child (Korea Band)
Genre: Angst, Kidnapping, M/M, Minor Character Death, Thriller, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-13 15:20:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 12,576
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29155731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bongvelys/pseuds/bongvelys
Summary: Youngtaek's blind date with the mysterious but charming Jaehyun goes sour as soon as he wakes up the next day in an underground facility owned by a scientist hell bent on improving the world, even if it means killing people in the process...
Relationships: Bong Jaehyun/Son Youngtaek | TAG
Kudos: 7





	1. One

Youngtaek stood in front of the full length mirror in his bedroom, wiping his sweaty hands against his jet black jeans. He let his fingers graze against the multiple piercings on his ears before tugging at his oversized green sweater. Upon seeing that Youngtaek was inspecting his appearance once again, his friend, Seungmin, groaned from behind him.

"Jeez Youngtaek, you've been staring at yourself in that mirror for ten minutes now," his short, brown haired friend was sprawled across Youngtaek's bed, his eyes glued to his phone, "after all these years of knowing you I didn't think you were this conceited."

"It's not that I'm so full of myself that I enjoy looking in the mirror," Youngtaek rolled his eyes before taking a seat on the bed, "I'm just nervous... Am I dressed too casual? What if he doesn't like me? What if he's a horrible person? What if-"

"Oh my God, shut up," Seungmin whined, shoving his phone in his pocket and pulling himself up to sit next to Youngtaek, "you're a nice guy, he'll definitely like you, and Bomin set up this date so I'm guessing this Jaehyun guy is nice too.

"So stop stressing out," Seungmin placed a comforting hand on Youngtaek's shoulder, flashing him a charming smile that made Youngtaek smile in return, "even if the date goes wrong, it's not the end of the world."

"You're right, I'm getting worked up over nothing." Youngtaek let out a light chuckle as his cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

As if on cue, a little chime came from Youngtaek's phone. He grabbed it off his nightstand and saw that he had just received a text from Jaehyun, stating that he was waiting outside the apartment building. Youngtaek's heart started to race and the palms of his hands started to sweat again. He looked at Seungmin with widened eyes, like a deer caught in the headlights. Seungmin let out an exaggerated groan, pushing his hair back only for his bangs to fall right back onto his forehead.

"Oh just get up and go you big drama queen!" Seungmin grabbed hold of Youngtaek's arm and forcefully ushered him to the front door.

"Okay, okay, make sure not to invite anyone over while I'm gone." Youngtaek stated as he arrived at the front door.

"Yes sir." Seungmin answered, kicking Youngtaek's shoes over towards him.

"And don't forget to feed Choco."

"Yes sir."

"And make sure Choco's in bed at 8pm sharp."

"Yes sir."

"And-"

"Okay Youngtaek, I know all my tasks for the night," Seungmin sighed deeply before pulling the front door open, "now would you please leave and go have some fun."

Youngtaek pursed his lips together into a nervous smile before nodding and making his way out of the apartment. Seungmin waved at him with a satisfied grin on his face and closed the door. Youngtaek took in a deep breath and exhaled, as an attempt to calm his nerves, before making his way to the elevator.

Once at the bottom floor of the apartment building, it didn't take him long to spot someone he suspected to be Jaehyun. The man had his back facing him. In the picture Bomin had shown Youngtaek, upon trying to set up this blind date, Jaehyun had black hair. However, this blonde haired man had the same tall and slender figure that Youngtaek saw in the picture. He was dressed in a black turtleneck, a leather jacket and a pair of black jeans. As if the man had sensed Youngtaek's presence, he turned around, which startled Youngtaek.

Youngtaek offered a sheepish smile before exiting the front doors and gingerly walking towards the man. The man gave him a brief and polite smile.

"Are you Youngtaek?" He asked in a small voice, adorably tilting his head to the side, making Youngtaek blush.

"Yeah I am," Youngtaek replied in a shyly, "and you must be Jaehyun?"

"Yes..." Jaehyun replied, a nervous expression on his face as he kept his both hands behind his back and rocked back and forth on his heels, "this is quite awkward..."

"Tell me about it." Youngtaek scoffed and Jaehyun let out a small chuckle.

"Well Bomin told me to think of a date idea but it was hard since I have no idea what you'd be into," Jaehyun scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, "but I thought we could just go to a café downtown."

"Sure." Youngtaek smiled politely before following Jaehyun to his car.

The car ride was short, but agonizingly awkward. Neither of the two boys knew how to spark up a conversation and after a few moments of silence, Jaehyun decided to turn up the volume on the radio. Eventually they arrived in the downtown area which was bustling with people. It was a Friday night, therefore the streets were packed with club goers and couples on dates. Jaehyun parked the car and the two walked in silence down the street.

"This is my absolute favorite café," Youngtaek finally broke the ice, smiling brightly as he gestured to the café they were approaching, "the music, the atmosphere, the food, everything is just perfect."

Jaehyun smiled at Youngtaek gushing over the café, as though he were silently agreeing to their date taking place there. Youngtaek stepped inside and Jaehyun came in behind him. The café was dimly lit with an array of fairy lights hanging from the ceiling. Soft lofi music played in the background against the murmur of chatter from the people seated in the café.

"I'll go order us something, you can go find us a table," Jaehyun suggested, "what would you like to drink?"

"Iced Americano is fine."

"Two Iced Americanos then." Jaehyun winked playfully and sauntered over to the counter.

Youngtaek spotted an empty table against the wall and made his way over to take a seat. In the most discreet way possible, he let his gaze fall onto Jaehyun. His straight blonde bangs fell lightly over his forehead and the array of piercings dangling from his ears twinkled under the fairy lights. His long fingers drummed against the counter and his doe-like eyes fixated absent-mindedly on the menu as he waited for their drinks. Youngtaek could conclude that he was incredibly good looking, but he just had to see if his personality was just as good.

Jaehyun walked over shortly with a tray containing their two drinks and a large slice of cake. He placed the tray on the table and handed Youngtaek his drink. Upon seeing Youngtaek's eye glance at the cake for a split second, Jaehyun snickered lightly.

"I thought you might want something to eat as well." Jaehyun gently pushed the plate towards Youngtaek, making the ashy haired boy blush.

"So what do you do?" Youngtaek asked, desperately changing the topic as he took a sip from his drink.

"I'm an actor," Jaehyun nodded, twirling his straw in his cup, "I just graduated from university so I've only been in minor roles so far."

"Oooh boy, now I can't trust you," Youngtaek joked, shaking his head, "I won't even know when you're pretending or not."

"I'm not that good," Jaehyun shrugged before sipping his coffee, "and what about you? What do you do?"

"Me? I work at the animal shelter!" Youngtaek replied excitedly and Jaehyun lifts his head up, the corners of his lips tugging into a very minute smile, "I get to look after animals the whole day, I'm living the dream I would say."

"That does sound quite nice." Jaehyun stated in a polite, gentle and monotone voice that he's managed to maintain the entire night.

It made Youngtaek wonder whether that's just the way he was. Reserved. Stoic. Polite. That was all he gauged from Jaehyun so far. That concerned him since it was a huge contrast from his eccentric and playful personality. He found himself questioning Bomin's matchmaking skills before he realized Jaehyun was staring at him.

"Is everything okay?" Jaehyun asked, his face cleared of any expression.

"Yeah, just daydreaming," Youngtaek quickly came up with an excuse before grabbing a fork and digging into the cake, "so how do you know Bomin?"

"We were in the same classes during university," Jaehyun answered, slurping down the last of his drink, "we were recently on the set for a new drama when he told me his single friend desperately needed to meet someone."

"That little..." Youngtaek frowned and placed his fork down, "just so you know, I am not desperate."

"Don't worry, I believe you." Jaehyun nodded slowly, looking down at his hands that were clasped together and resting on the table.

Youngtaek scarfed down the rest of the cake and chugged down his coffee while Jaehyun stayed completely silent. Jaehyun offered to pay the bill but Youngtaek would not have any of that. In a civil manner, they both split the bill before exiting the café. In silence they walked to Jaehyun's car.

"Did you have a good time?" Jaehyun asked softly once they were seated in the car.

"Yes I did," Youngtaek nodded, giving Jaehyun a sweet smile, "it was nice to be out, plus you're really calming, you know that?"

"Am I?" Jaehyun scoffed slightly before quickly simmering back into his reserved self.

"Yeah." Youngtaek turned his attention towards the window as Jaehyun started the car and began to drive away from the dowtown area.

Once again the car ride was silent, except for the humming of the radio and the occasional voice of the GPS directing them back to Youngtaek's apartment. Youngtaek's mind was clouded with thoughts about Jaehyun and how their date played out. It was awkward, to say the least, but he felt that Jaehyun was decent enough. He seemed like a charming guy and he wouldn't mind getting to know him better. Youngtaek was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard the GPS utter "you have reached your destination" and the car started to slow down.

He sat up in his seat and turned to face Jaehyun. Just as he was about to say his goodbyes, Jaehyun stomped on the exhilarator and the car zoomed past the apartment building. The sudden movement made Youngtaek's eyes widen as he fell back into his seat.

"Jaehyun, what are yo-"

His words got cut off by a sharp pain at his temple. The streetlights became a blurry mess as his words were now slurred and unfathomable. The blurry image of Jaehyun gripping onto the steering wheel with his stoic face fixated on the road in front of him was the last thing Youngtaek saw before he completely lost consciousness.


	2. Two

"He's been stabilized," Youngtaek heard a calm, high pitch voice speak, but his heavy eyelids refused to open, "he should come to in about five minutes, please inform your father."

There was no reply from whomever the man was speaking to, instead Youngtaek simply heard a pair light footsteps slowly moving away from him. Youngtaek could feel that his body was resting on a bed and he was wrapped in a thin, polyester blanket. He was engulfed in the scent of sterilizer and sanitizer, all sorts of things one would commonly find in a hospital. Youngtaek groggily forced his eyes open and they were immediately met with a gray stone ceiling.

He rolled his head to the side to see three another beds occupied by people who were clearly unconscious or struggling to wake up. He turned to the other side and saw another two similarly occupied beds. He tried his best to sit up but he was quickly stopped by a pair of hands pushing him back down by his shoulders.

"Calm down sir," he heard the same voice of the man that was speaking earlier and looked up to see a petite looking man with a youthful face, wearing an all white uniform and a nametag that read 'Donghyun', "you can just lay down for now, no need to get restless."

"Where am I?" Youngtaek asked in a weak and hoarse voice.

"You'll be briefed on everything soon enough," Donghyun flashed him a polite smile, his eyes squinting into crescents, "just rest for now."

Before Youngtaek could ask any further questions, Donghyun hurried away to speak to one of other several people also dressed in the all white uniform. Youngtaek unknowingly sighed softly as he faced his head towards the ceiling. He was highly convinced that this was all some terrible dream that he couldn't wait to wake up from. Either that or somebody spiked his drink last night and Jaehyun took it upon himself to rush him to a very sketchy hospital. Yeah that's it, Youngtaek thought to himself, nothing to worry about.

The doors were slammed open, which made Youngtaek flinch in shock. He quickly sat up in his seat, this time without Donghyun trying to stop him, and watched as a tall dark haired man wearing a white lab coat walked into the room with quick and heavy steps. Trailing behind him were two other men in black suits. Further at the back of the trio was... Jaehyun? Youngtaek's eyes widened as Jaehyun, dressed exactly as he was for their date, took agonizingly slow steps into the room, his eyes lifeless and his hands stuffed into the pockets of his jacket.

"Yo Jaehyun!" Youngtaek exclaimed, before coughing loudly, "what's going on?"

Jaehyun flinched at the sound of his name and stared at Youngtaek with fearful eyes, as if he was about to get into trouble. Jaehyun briskly dropped his gaze to the floor, making Youngtaek frown in confusion. Youngtaek then heard someone clear their throat and he turned to see the man in the lab coat raising an eyebrow at him, his arms folded across his chest.

"Now that I have everyone's attention," he spoke with annoyance laced in his voice, "I would like to formally welcome you to this program.

"I am Doctor Lee, a scientist who has been working on ways to make life better for us humans," he smiled, pushing his round rimmed glasses up his nose bridge, "my latest experiment may change science forever.

"I have developed an ice chamber that will allow humans to stay frozen for a certain amount of time," he explained, slowly pacing up and down the room, "the purpose being that those with life threatening and incurable illnesses may be frozen until a cure is found.

"For now the chamber only lasts 24 hours, so we'll have to work towards a longer time period," Doctor Lee intently checked the expressions of those seated in the beds, "the good news is that it was tested on several animals and the results were successful. There is a high chance it will work on humans as well."

"Ah, I get it!" Youngtaek chirped in, causing Doctor Lee and everyone else in the room to stare at him, "I'm being pranked!"

"My friend Bomin probably set this whole thing up right?" Youngtaek let out a painfully fake laugh as he clapped his hands together, "he's always annoying me like this! I bet he did all of this just because I stole his-"

"This is no joke!" Doctor Lee raised his voice, startling Youngtaek, "we are here for an extremely important experiment.

"Now as I was saying, this could work on humans, but no volunteers are willing," he continued, "therefore we rounded you lot up in hopes that you would agree, you see we had to take matters into our own hands."

"Uh yeah," a well built black haired man raised his hand and shook his head, "I ain't doing this."

"Yeah, you basically kidnapped us and now you want us to help you?" A red headed man spoke up, his bangs falling into his eyes, "You can miss me with that, thank you."

Youngtaek looked back at Doctor Lee and saw him balling his hands into fists - he swore he even saw a vein throbbing at his forehead - before he exhaled deeply. Doctor Lee then put on his polite smile again, making Youngtaek's skin crawl at how unsettling this man was.

"I ask you all not to make such quick decisions," he laughed nervously, "just think about it and let me know tomorrow how you all feel."

Despite the shouts and jeers of protest from the people seated in their beds, Doctor Lee ignored them and stormed out of the room. Youngtaek watched as Jaehyun followed behind the two men in suits, his expression unreadable. Youngtaek just wished his annoying alarm would wake him up from this dream.


	3. Three

Youngtaek didn't know when or how he fell asleep. The whole ordeal felt like a nightmare, so when he was awoken by the sound of someone cursing under their breath and his eyes fluttered open to see the concrete ceiling under the dim lighting, he was mortified. He turned his head, hoping to find the source of the sound, and saw the red headed boy from before sitting upright on his bed and frantically clawing at something on his wrist.

"What are you doing?" Youngtaek asked in a soft and hoarse voice, straining his eyes to see the other boy under the light of the single light bulb dangling from the ceiling.

"I'm getting out of here." The man replied in an equally low voice, startling Youngtaek as he didn't think the other had heard him.

Youngtaek squinted his eyes and was eventually able to see that the boy was trying to pull out his IV drip. Youngtaek looked down at the IV drip attached to his own wrist and he still was finding it difficult to wrap his head around his current situation. He was kidnapped and was being forced into a dangerous experiment. He wondered whether his friends were looking for him. Surely Seungmin would be concerned that he wasn't home yet. He wondered if Bomin knew that his friend Jaehyun was a scumbag who abducted innocent people.

His thoughts were disrupted by the other man letting out a hushed 'yes' and Youngtaek looked back at him to see him shakily hopping out of his bed. Youngtaek watched as the man threw on his jacket and slipped on his shoes that were placed at his bedside. Once dressed, he spared a brief glance at Youngtaek, giving him a small wave before jogging to the door. The man slowly opened the door and slipped out ever so discreetly.

Then there was silence. It looked so easy to just get up and run away. After a few seconds, Youngtaek let out the breath he didn't even know he was holding and was genuinely convinced the man had escaped safely. The prospect of sneaking out seemed more and more appealing, until Youngtaek heard a blood curdling scream. The others in the room all abruptly woke up from the slumber while Youngtaek sat up in his bed, his heart rattling against his chest.

The screams got louder and more desperate, making Youngtaek's skin crawl. Then there was a great thud, that made everyone in the room flinch, and was followed by complete silence. Everyone exchanged worried and scared glances. That incident alone was frightening enough to prevent any of them from trying to escape.

Youngtaek could not bring himself to sleep after that. What had they done to the red headed man? If he screamed like that, whatever they did must have been torturous. His thoughts raced so quickly through his mind, wondering how he would make it out of this predicament alive, that he didn't even notice the sun starting to creep through the slit-like windows near the ceiling.

His thoughts were eventually disrupted by the steel door clashing open and two guards walked in, scowls on their faces.

"It's breakfast time," one of them announced, "you'll each be given a tray of food and thereafter you will be given your medication."

"And don't try anything funny," the other guard warned them menacingly, "don't be stupid like that guy last night."

A few nurses sauntered into the room rolling metal carts with the food trays on them. Youngtaek noticed the nurse from the previous night, Donghyun, taking his cart to people opposite him. Donghyun stood out from the other nurses. Aside from his petite stature and youthful face, he showed the most emotion. The others were stoic and showed no sympathy for the captives. Donghyun, on the other hand, looked sad as he handed them their bland oatmeal and water. He looked sad when he tried to calm down Youngtaek.

Once Youngtaek had received his food, he put a spoonful in his mouth and almost immediately wanted to throw it up. It wasn't that the food was disgusting, it was, in fact, the situation that made him feel sick to his stomach. He couldn't eat knowing he'd probably be a frozen corpse in a few days time. He forcefully swallowed the single spoonful before chugging half of the glass of water.

After some time, the doors opened again and Jaehyun walked in with a bottle of pills in his hand. Anger began to surge throughout Youngtaek's entire being. The mere presence of Jaehyun and that unreadable expression on his face made Youngtaek incredibly upset. Jaehyun went to the series of beds opposite to Youngtaek and began to distribute the medication. With fury blocking his senses, Youngtaek almost didn't catch what Jaehyun was actually doing.

At each bed, Jaehyun stood at an angle such that the guards at the door could not see the captive nor the front view of himself. He pulled a pill out of the bottle and extended his arm out, as though handing it to the person. The bewildered captive tried to take it from him, but he instead popped the pill into the inner pocket of his leather jacket. Upon seeing this, Youngtaek's anger subsided and was replaced by confusion.

He didn't understand why Jaehyun, the man who was the reason he was there in the first place, would stop the captives from taking the medication. Eventually the blonde haired boy arrived at Youngtaek's bed and began the same movements as with the other captives.

"What is your deal?" Youngtaek asked in a voice softer than a whisper as Jaehyun was tucking the pill into his pocket.

Jaehyun looked straight at Youngtaek. He had the same dead expression on his face, but Youngtaek noticed that his eyes were glassy and filled with pain. That was an answer enough that there was more to Jaehyun than some prick who works for a rich scientist. Jaehyun started to look nervous, his breathing getting a bit faster, before he hurriedly walked away from Youngtaek.


	4. Four

Youngtaek could not stop thinking about how Jaehyun reacted to his simple question. Sure it was a small reaction, but it was an unexpected one nonetheless. He was starting to see that behind Jaehyun's emotionless persona, there was a deeper story. Remembering how teary Jaehyun's eyes looked, as though he was about to cry, Youngtaek couldn't even bring himself to be angry at the guy anymore. He just wanted answers, but he didn't how he would be able to get them.

After their hostile breakfast, the captives were left in silence, seated in their beds under the watchful eyes of the two beefy guards standing at the door. Youngtaek was left to his own thoughts, pondering whether Seungmin had reported him missing yet or if the police were searching for him. He wondered where this facility was located. Was it underground? Was it on some remote land or hidden amongst the bustling city? Was Jaehyun being forced to do this against his will? And if so, why?

His mental rambling was interrupted by a hard knock on the door before the guards opened it. In walked Doctor Lee and a few nurses behind tailing behind him in an orderly fashion. Youngtaek realized Donghyun wasn't there and neither was Jaehyun.

"Subjects, I have exciting news," Doctor Lee clapped his hands together and gave everyone a gentle smile that made Youngtaek feel nauseous, "I have designed the appropriate amount of ice pods and in a few days they will be ready for testing!

"Of course I wouldn't want you all to be lying in these uncomfortable beds for the duration of those few days, thus you will split into pairs and moved to a very spacious dorm room. You will be allowed to leave your rooms three times a day for your meals in the cafeteria.

"I trust that you will find this arrangement more convenient and comfortable," Doctor Lee nodded, that smile never leaving his face, "you will be escorted by one of the nurses, please cooperate. Thank you."

With that, Doctor Lee took large strides and exited the room. The nurses dispersed to their allocated captives and began carefully removing their IV drips. Once Youngtaek's nurse had removed his drip, she helped him to his feet and gave him a pair of slippers to wear. Along with the white hospital gown they had already put him in, Youngtaek felt miserable.

The nurse held onto Youngtaek's arm as she led him out of the room. They entered a wide hallway that was covered in concrete from the floor to the walls. The ceiling was high, but Youngtaek definitely felt like they were underground somewhere. They turned into another corridor which had several doors across the walls. They stopped at a door with the number 709 written on it and the nurse typed in a passcode to open it, covering the keypad with her body so Youngtaek couldn't see the password.

She opened the metal door and stepped aside, gesturing for Youngtaek to enter the room. He complied, taking slow steps into the room. The walls and floor were complete concrete, as was the rest of the facility they were in. As he entered, on his left was a tiny passageway that revealed a toilet and a basin. The rest of the room was a plain square with two beds - that looked at least more comfortable than their hospital beds - pressed up against the wall on either side. In the middle of the beds was a box of toiletries.

Youngtaek stood in the middle of the beds, taking in his new environment, before turning to look towards the nurse. She was still standing at the door, seemingly waiting for someone. Another nurse arrived at the door and behind her was a man shorter than Youngtaek with jet black hair and sharp facial features. He entered the room and gingerly inspected his surroundings, as Youngtaek did. He made brief eye contact with Youngtaek as he approached the beds before dropping his gaze to the floor.

"You two are now roommates, we hope you are both able to adapt to staying together," the nurse that escorted Youngtaek announced, "there is a toilet on your right, showers are available in the communal bathroom.

"You will be served lunch in the cafeteria. Besides bath time and meal times, you will unfortunately not be allowed out of this room," the nurse continued with a pitiful smile, "if there is anything you need, don't hesitate to buzz us."

She gestured to an intercom that was near the door and, with that, the two nurses closed the door. The keypad sounded from the other side of the door, signaling the door was locked.

"If there's anything I need, it's a phone to call the damn cops." Youngtaek muttered under his breath and he flinched at the sound of the other man's soft laughter.

"Oh sorry," the man quickly said upon Youngtaek lifting his eyes to look at him, "this whole situation is making me lose my mind, laughing is a sad coping mechanism."

"It's alright, I think I'm also about to go crazy," Youngtaek huffed with a bitter smile on his face before he reached his hand out, "I'm Youngtaek."

"Sungyoon." The man replied, shaking Youngtaek's hand.


	5. Five

"So you thought you were getting a recording deal?" Youngtaek pondered after Sungyoon had given him the back story of how he ended up in the facility.

"Yeah… Now I realize how naive I was," Sungyoon laughed bitterly, "I would call myself a struggling musician so I jump up at anything that looks like an opportunity for me… Everyone told me to be more careful and I guess I should've listened."

"Well don't be so hard on yourself," Youngtaek consoled the older boy, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, "no one could've guessed you'd be kidnapped and forced into some sketchy science experiment."

"I guess you're right about that," Sungyoon chuckled lightly, "so what about you? How did you end up here?"

"I think mine is embarrassing," Youngtaek scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, "I was on a blind date…"

"Really? Have I seen this person already? The one who tricked you on the date?" Sungyoon asked curiously and Youngtaek exhaled a deep sigh.

"His name is Jaehyun, the guy who brought the medication for us." Youngtaek replied, the sound of Jaehyun's name on his own mouth making him upset.

"Oh yeah, now I remember how you called out to him that night they first briefed us," Sungyoon nodded knowingly, "I can't blame you for agreeing to go on the date, he's cute."

"Whatever," Youngtaek rolled his eyes, "he's still an evil kidnapper and because of him I'm gonna end up dead."

"Let's hope that won't be the case and this wacko's experiment works." Sungyoon grinned, trying to lighten the atmosphere, to which Youngtaek replied with a small smile.

There was nothing to be happy about in the situation that he was in, but nevertheless he was grateful he had met Sungyoon. The older boy was somehow able to make him feel comfortable and his constant positive attitude gave him hope that everything would be okay. After only a few hours of knowing each other, Youngtaek felt as though Sungyoon was a good friend that he would want to keep in his life. He wanted this predicament to end so he and Sungyoon could leave and bond under better circumstances.

Sungyoon and Youngtaek chatted about anything and everything, their friends, family and overall lives outside of the facility. It was only the sound of the intercom that snapped them out of their conversation.

"Subjects, it is now bath time. You will all be escorted by a nurse to the communal showers," a gentle voice sounded from the intercom, "you are allocated an hour before you will have to return to your rooms."

Once the intercom switched off, the sound of someone punching in the passcode on the keypad came from the other side of the door. The door opened and Donghyun stood at the doorframe. Now, Youngtaek had concluded that he hated everyone who worked at the facility, but he couldn't help feeling relieved by seeing Donghyun rather than another nurse. As he realized before, Donghyun seemed to have more emotions and empathy towards the captives.

"You can take whatever toiletries you may need and follow me." Donghyun said in his usual polite voice and gestured towards the box of toiletries.

Youngtaek and Sungyoon grabbed whatever they needed before exiting the room. In silence they walked behind Donghyun, the other captives walking next to them with their own allocated nurses. They arrived at a pair of tall glass doors that clearly showed rows of showers and basins on the inside. One of the nurses put in the passcode on the keypad and unlocked the doors.

"Alright, these are the communal showers," Donghyun turned towards Youngtaek and Sungyoon, "I will leave now, please make sure to be back in your room once the time limit is up."

With that, Donghyun hurried away and the other two were left to their own devices. They both entered the large room and each took their own shower stall. They both, alongside the other captives, showered in silence, the only sound being the gush of water from the faucets. Youngtaek finished before Sungyoon and quickly changed back into his gown. He stood at one of the basins, waiting for Sungyoon, when he felt a pair of eyes on him. He looked towards the doors and saw Jaehyun standing there, the boy's hands buried into the pockets of his hoodie and his eyes peering through his bangs.

Without thinking, Youngtaek stormed over to him. Jaehyun instinctively backed away until the two of them were standing in the dim corridor next to the communal showers. Jaehyun had his head low and Youngtaek could see him staring blankly at the floor. The fact Jaehyun remained so cold and deadpan made Youngtaek even more infuriated. He harshly shoved Jaehyun, hard enough that the other boy stumbled back into the wall.

"What the hell do you want from me?" Youngtaek glared at Jaehyun, speaking through gritted teeth, "you try to act like you care by getting rid of that medication and now you're just staring at me like some freak. Admiring your work? Checking in on the life you ruined?"

Youngtaek took a step closer and Jaehyun flinched. Jaehyun's head was down and his hands, now at his sides, were tremoring slightly. Youngtaek's glare faltered when he heard Jaehyun let out a soft, shaky breath. Jaehyun slowly placed his hands back in his pockets, clearing his throat, and stood up straight, his gaze still focused on the floor.

"Still not gonna explain yourself, huh?" Youngtaek spat bitterely, taking a step back.

"Hey Youngtaek, let's go." He heard Sungyoon call out to him softly and turned to see the elder boy waiting for him by the glass doors.

Youngtaek flashed one last glare towards Jaehyun before jogging over to meet Sungyoon.

"What was that?" Sungyoon asked as they walked back to their room, not forgetting to spare a glance at Jaehyun.

"Nothing."


	6. Six

Youngtaek had another night where he couldn't sleep. His thoughts were clouded with Jaehyun's crying face and him apologizing over and over again. Part of him wondered whether Jaehyun was actually remorseful and was being forced to participate in Doctor Lee's horrible acts. The other part of him, however, couldn't help but believe Jaehyun wasn't being genuine and it was more of a "he's only sorry because Youngtaek called him out" scenario.

At some point Youngtaek fell asleep and was awoken by the intercom. It was time for breakfast. He exited his bed and washed his face in the basin near the toilet. A few minutes later his door opened and he left the room to join the other captives in the corridor, walking in a straight line towards the cafeteria under the watchful eyes of several nurses and guards. They arrived at the cafeteria and followed the line to collect their food.

Upon seeing the food on his tray as he walked to an empty table, Youngtaek's thoughts drifted back to Jaehyun. Did he really think bringing a sandwich and crying was gonna be enough? Youngtaek scoffed bitterly at the thought, poking at his bland oatmeal with his spoon. He ate one spoonful and that was all for his lack of appetite came back shortly after. He chugged down his glass of water and threw the rest of his food away, as he had been doing for the third day in a row now.

Their alloted time of one hour still wasn't up so Youngtaek was allowed to either sit in the cafeteria and do nothing or go back to his room. He opted for going back to his room because at least then he wouldn't have to resist the urge to scream at the nurses or punch one of the guards in the face. He spotted Donghyun standing near the entrance and decided if he wanted anyone to escort him back to his room, he would prefer the nurse he hated the least.

"I want to go back to my room." Youngtaek said in a hoarse voice once he arrived in front of the petite nurse, a deadpan expression on his face.

"Alright." Donghyun nodded before informing one of the other nurses that they were leaving.

Donghyun and Youngtaek walked side by side in silence. Youngtaek wanted to ask him whether he hated the facility or whether he disagreed with Doctor Lee's orders, but he felt it was better to just keep quiet.

"Donghyun." Someone called out in low voice and Youngtaek and Donghyun stopped in their tracks, turning their heads to see Jaehyun walking towards them.

"Yes Jaehyun?" Donghyun replied.

"Doctor Lee said you need to restock the oxygen masks," Jaehyun answered casually, his hands stuffed in the pockets of his leather jacket, "it's urgent."

"Okay then, I'll just take 1304 to his room and afterwards go to the pharmaceutical storage." Donghyun nodded politely.

"Uh, why don't I just take 1304 to his room and you can go to storage right now?" Jaehyun suggested, moving closer to Youngtaek's side, "as I said, it's urgent."

"Oh well I suppose that would be alright," Donghyun agreed a bit gingerly, but started to walk in the opposite direction nonetheless, "thank you Jaehyun."

Donghyun turned his back to them and began to briskly walk away from them. Jaehyun then began to walk in the opposite direction with a confused Youngtaek tailing behind him. Youngtaek tried to open his mouth to speak, but Jaehyun placed his index finger on his own lips, indicating for Youngtaek to stay quiet. They walked for a few steps, Jaehyun looking over his shoulder every five seconds. Once he realized they were alone in the corridor, Jaehyun grabbed onto Youngtaek's wrist and started to run.

"What the-" Youngtaek started, but was cut off by Jaehyun hushing him.

Jaehyun dragged him towards a metal door before letting go of his grip. He pushed the door open and walked through, Youngtaek following him despite not knowing what was going on. Jaehyun shut the door behind him and Youngtaek walked further into the room, inspecting his surroundings. It seemed like some sort of storage room as there were shelves of hospital gowns, slippers and bedding materials. Jaehyun walked to the middle of the room, waiting patiently for Youngtaek to join him.

"I hope you dragged me here to finally answer my one question for you," Youngtaek scowled as he walked over to stand in front of Jaehyun, "what the hell is your deal? Don't say sorry and try to act all nice, just explain yourself."

"I do want to explain myself, but I don't even know where to begin." Jaehyun replied, his voice soft and fragile.

"Well for starters, why are you working at this place and is anything you told me that night even true?" Youngtaek folded his arms, his eyes glaring and showing his frustration.

"Well everything I said on our date is true, I'm Jaehyun and I'm studying acting in the same classes as your friend Bomin," Jaehyun explained, his eyes not meeting Youngtaek, "Bomin doesn't know anything about this."

"Now answer the other question." Youngtaek demanded harshly.

"Okay…" Jaehyun inhaled deeply and exhaled shakily, nervously scratching the back of his hand, "I-I have no choice but to cooperate and work at this place…"

"And why is that?" Youngtaek raised an eyebrow.

"Doctore Lee… is my father." Jaehyun stated and Youngtaek's eyes widened in shock.

"He is a chemical engineer and he's been working in pharmaceuticals his whole life," Jaehyun began to explain, still not making eye contact with Youngtaek, "but he's always had this fixation on changing the world of medicine, and I always admired him for that.

"He always went out of his way in his spare time to work on experiments, trying to crack down viral illnesses or figuring ways to improve the medical industry. They have always been fairly small projects, but about two years ago he started obsessing over the idea of these ice chambers.

"He spent almost all his time at home on this project. Eventually he quit his job and opened up his own lab so he spend even more time focusing on the ice chambers. Then late last year he built this facility underneath his lab to begin building the chambers and start testing.

"Once animal testing was done and successful, he had to begin human testing. He asked for volunteers but no one wanted to do it. That's when he took matters into his hands and hired a bunch of sketchy nurses and guards desperate for jobs, despite the nature of this work.

"He made some of the nurses and guards go undercover and kidnap people for the experiment. The experiment kept failing and people kept dying, yet he still abducted more and more innocent people. For this batch of captives he needed one more person, so he wanted me to lure in someone from my school. I couldn't bring myself to do it, but then Bomin tried to set up that blind date-"

"So you took the opportunity because there would be less guilt abducting someone you don't know." Youngtaek cut Jaehyun off, a bitter expression on his face.

"I'm so sorry Youngtaek," Jaehyun spoke in a soft voice, the tears beginning to rush down his face, "I still feel guilty, you're such a nice person and I ruined your life, but I couldn't go against my father. God knows what he would've done if I disobeyed him."

"What do you mean?"

"My father- He was always a kind man," Jaehyun choked up, heaving softly as the tears continued to fall from his eyes, "but this p-project changed him, he lost a-all his morals and I know he would do something terrible to me if I went against him. Thinking about what he did to Joo-"

Jaehyun's words were cut off by his own sobs. Youngtaek wanted to know what he was going to say, but decided against pestering him upon seeing how broken Jaehyun was.

"Jaehyun…" Youngtaek's voice softened as he sighed and watched Jaehyun break down into a full on sob, "you can't let your father take control of you and threaten you into things you don't stand for.

"You know all of this wrong… you can't just stand there and watch it happen," Youngtaek sighed deeply, running his hand through his hair, "if you're really sorry, you'll do everything in your power fix this."

"I want to get everyone out of here, I want my father to get caught," Jaehyun finally looked at Youngtaek's face, his eyes wide and his cheeks damp with tears, "but I don't know how."

The sight of Jaehyun made Youngtaek's heart hurt. The boy, for once, looked so desperate and genuine. His stoic and stubborn nature was completely stripped away and Youngtaek could finally see the side of him that he was hiding. Youngtaek knew there was more to him, but his lack of evidence made him loathe him. Now Youngtaek felt sorry for him. The two of them stood there in thought for a few moments.

"I have a plan," Jaehyun stated, licking his lips nervously as Youngtaek stared at him in anticipation, "there's a landline in the infirmary but only the nurses have access to that room.

"Tonight you can pretend to fall sick and a nurse will take you to the infirmary. Once you're there the nurse will be distracted by you and I'll use the landline to call for help."

"Are you sure that'll work?" Youngtaek pondered, getting anxious about executing the plan, "and are you sure you're ready to stand up against your father?"

"Yes to both questions."


	7. Seven

Youngtaek had another night where he couldn't sleep. His thoughts were clouded with Jaehyun's crying face and him apologizing over and over again. Part of him wondered whether Jaehyun was actually remorseful and was being forced to participate in Doctor Lee's horrible acts. The other part of him, however, couldn't help but believe Jaehyun wasn't being genuine and it was more of a "he's only sorry because Youngtaek called him out" scenario.

At some point Youngtaek fell asleep and was awoken by the intercom. It was time for breakfast. He exited his bed and washed his face in the basin near the toilet. A few minutes later his door opened and he left the room to join the other captives in the corridor, walking in a straight line towards the cafeteria under the watchful eyes of several nurses and guards. They arrived at the cafeteria and followed the line to collect their food.

Upon seeing the food on his tray as he walked to an empty table, Youngtaek's thoughts drifted back to Jaehyun. Did he really think bringing a sandwich and crying was gonna be enough? Youngtaek scoffed bitterly at the thought, poking at his bland oatmeal with his spoon. He ate one spoonful and that was all for his lack of appetite came back shortly after. He chugged down his glass of water and threw the rest of his food away, as he had been doing for the third day in a row now.

Their alloted time of one hour still wasn't up so Youngtaek was allowed to either sit in the cafeteria and do nothing or go back to his room. He opted for going back to his room because at least then he wouldn't have to resist the urge to scream at the nurses or punch one of the guards in the face. He spotted Donghyun standing near the entrance and decided if he wanted anyone to escort him back to his room, he would prefer the nurse he hated the least.

"I want to go back to my room." Youngtaek said in a hoarse voice once he arrived in front of the petite nurse, a deadpan expression on his face.

"Alright." Donghyun nodded before informing one of the other nurses that they were leaving.

Donghyun and Youngtaek walked side by side in silence. Youngtaek wanted to ask him whether he hated the facility or whether he disagreed with Doctor Lee's orders, but he felt it was better to just keep quiet.

"Donghyun." Someone called out in low voice and Youngtaek and Donghyun stopped in their tracks, turning their heads to see Jaehyun walking towards them.

"Yes Jaehyun?" Donghyun replied.

"Doctor Lee said you need to restock the oxygen masks," Jaehyun answered casually, his hands stuffed in the pockets of his leather jacket, "it's urgent."

"Okay then, I'll just take 1304 to his room and afterwards go to the pharmaceutical storage." Donghyun nodded politely.

"Uh, why don't I just take 1304 to his room and you can go to storage right now?" Jaehyun suggested, moving closer to Youngtaek's side, "as I said, it's urgent."

"Oh well I suppose that would be alright," Donghyun agreed a bit gingerly, but started to walk in the opposite direction nonetheless, "thank you Jaehyun."

Donghyun turned his back to them and began to briskly walk away from them. Jaehyun then began to walk in the opposite direction with a confused Youngtaek tailing behind him. Youngtaek tried to open his mouth to speak, but Jaehyun placed his index finger on his own lips, indicating for Youngtaek to stay quiet. They walked for a few steps, Jaehyun looking over his shoulder every five seconds. Once he realized they were alone in the corridor, Jaehyun grabbed onto Youngtaek's wrist and started to run.

"What the-" Youngtaek started, but was cut off by Jaehyun hushing him.

Jaehyun dragged him towards a metal door before letting go of his grip. He pushed the door open and walked through, Youngtaek following him despite not knowing what was going on. Jaehyun shut the door behind him and Youngtaek walked further into the room, inspecting his surroundings. It seemed like some sort of storage room as there were shelves of hospital gowns, slippers and bedding materials. Jaehyun walked to the middle of the room, waiting patiently for Youngtaek to join him.

"I hope you dragged me here to finally answer my one question for you," Youngtaek scowled as he walked over to stand in front of Jaehyun, "what the hell is your deal? Don't say sorry and try to act all nice, just explain yourself."

"I do want to explain myself, but I don't even know where to begin." Jaehyun replied, his voice soft and fragile.

"Well for starters, why are you working at this place and is anything you told me that night even true?" Youngtaek folded his arms, his eyes glaring and showing his frustration.

"Well everything I said on our date is true, I'm Jaehyun and I'm studying acting in the same classes as your friend Bomin," Jaehyun explained, his eyes not meeting Youngtaek, "Bomin doesn't know anything about this."

"Now answer the other question." Youngtaek demanded harshly.

"Okay…" Jaehyun inhaled deeply and exhaled shakily, nervously scratching the back of his hand, "I-I have no choice but to cooperate and work at this place…"

"And why is that?" Youngtaek raised an eyebrow.

"Doctore Lee… is my father." Jaehyun stated and Youngtaek's eyes widened in shock.

"He is a chemical engineer and he's been working in pharmaceuticals his whole life," Jaehyun began to explain, still not making eye contact with Youngtaek, "but he's always had this fixation on changing the world of medicine, and I always admired him for that.

"He always went out of his way in his spare time to work on experiments, trying to crack down viral illnesses or figuring ways to improve the medical industry. They have always been fairly small projects, but about two years ago he started obsessing over the idea of these ice chambers.

"He spent almost all his time at home on this project. Eventually he quit his job and opened up his own lab so he spend even more time focusing on the ice chambers. Then late last year he built this facility underneath his lab to begin building the chambers and start testing.

"Once animal testing was done and successful, he had to begin human testing. He asked for volunteers but no one wanted to do it. That's when he took matters into his hands and hired a bunch of sketchy nurses and guards desperate for jobs, despite the nature of this work.

"He made some of the nurses and guards go undercover and kidnap people for the experiment. The experiment kept failing and people kept dying, yet he still abducted more and more innocent people. For this batch of captives he needed one more person, so he wanted me to lure in someone from my school. I couldn't bring myself to do it, but then Bomin tried to set up that blind date-"

"So you took the opportunity because there would be less guilt abducting someone you don't know." Youngtaek cut Jaehyun off, a bitter expression on his face.

"I'm so sorry Youngtaek," Jaehyun spoke in a soft voice, the tears beginning to rush down his face, "I still feel guilty, you're such a nice person and I ruined your life, but I couldn't go against my father. God knows what he would've done if I disobeyed him."

"What do you mean?"

"My father- He was always a kind man," Jaehyun choked up, heaving softly as the tears continued to fall from his eyes, "but this p-project changed him, he lost a-all his morals and I know he would do something terrible to me if I went against him. Thinking about what he did to Joo-"

Jaehyun's words were cut off by his own sobs. Youngtaek wanted to know what he was going to say, but decided against pestering him upon seeing how broken Jaehyun was.

"Jaehyun…" Youngtaek's voice softened as he sighed and watched Jaehyun break down into a full on sob, "you can't let your father take control of you and threaten you into things you don't stand for.

"You know all of this wrong… you can't just stand there and watch it happen," Youngtaek sighed deeply, running his hand through his hair, "if you're really sorry, you'll do everything in your power fix this."

"I want to get everyone out of here, I want my father to get caught," Jaehyun finally looked at Youngtaek's face, his eyes wide and his cheeks damp with tears, "but I don't know how."

The sight of Jaehyun made Youngtaek's heart hurt. The boy, for once, looked so desperate and genuine. His stoic and stubborn nature was completely stripped away and Youngtaek could finally see the side of him that he was hiding. Youngtaek knew there was more to him, but his lack of evidence made him loathe him. Now Youngtaek felt sorry for him. The two of them stood there in thought for a few moments.

"I have a plan," Jaehyun stated, licking his lips nervously as Youngtaek stared at him in anticipation, "there's a landline in the infirmary but only the nurses have access to that room.

"Tonight you can pretend to fall sick and a nurse will take you to the infirmary. Once you're there the nurse will be distracted by you and I'll use the landline to call for help."

"Are you sure that'll work?" Youngtaek pondered, getting anxious about executing the plan, "and are you sure you're ready to stand up against your father?"

"Yes to both questions."


	8. Eight

Jaehyun opened the door and checked to see if no one was around - the halls were still empty since breakfast time was not over yet - before gesturing for Youngtaek to follow him. They walked towards Youngtaek's room in silence, Jaehyun occasionally sniffing and patting his face dry with the sleeve of his jacket. Once they reached the room, Jaehyun typed in the passcode and opened the door. Youngtaek walked into the room and Jaehyun leaned his weight on the doorframe.

"Question." Youngtaek spoke in almost a whisper.

"Go ahead."

"Why don't you just leave the facility and go report your father to the police?"

"I wish it were that easy," Jaehyun sighed, another stray tear rolling down his cheek, "everything I do is monitored, there's a camera and tracker in my car and my phone and I can't leave the facility unless given permission by my father…"

"Oh I see…" Youngtaek bit down on his lip.

They stood in silence, both pitying and feeling sorry for the other. Youngtaek's gaze fell upon Jaehyun's face before reaching his hand forward and wiping the remaining tear stains with his thumb. Jaehyun froze at the sudden contact, but felt slightly disappointed when Youngtaek drew his hand back.

"I'm sorry, Youngtaek." Jaehyun said once again in a low voice, sincerity in his eyes.

"You can stop apologizing Jaehyun, I know you too were in a tough predicament," Youngtaek sighed, "I'll forgive you when you get me out of this place tonight."

Jaehyun huffed and a small smile crept up on his face. The last time Youngtaek had seen him smile was on their date. Youngtaek couldn't help the minute smile that appeared on his own face. The last time he had smiled was with Sungyoon. His smile dropped upon thinking about what probably happened to Sungyoon. It had been about a day since Sungyoon went for the experiment. He still felt pessimistic about the situation, but a tiny part of him had hope that later that afternoon they would announce the project was a success and Sungyoon was alive.

"I promise I'll get you and everyone else out of here," Jaehyun's voice snapped Youngtaek out of his thoughts, "even if it's the last thing I do."

Youngtaek looked up and couldn't help but notice how small the distance was between them. He and Jaehyun held gazes for a second before Youngtaek took a step back, placing a hand on Jaehyun's shoulder and pursing his lips together into an awkward smile. He gave Jaehyun's shoulder a gentle squeeze before pulling away.

"I'll see you later." Youngtaek said softly before Jaehyun nodded and closed the door behind him.

The day passed agonizingly slowly. Youngtaek spent majority of his time lying on his bed and lost in his thoughts. He wondered whether he would be able to convince the nurses he was sick. That shouldn't be too much of a problem considering he already felt terrible due to his mental health declining and the lack of food in his system. He imagined the police bursting into the facility and arresting Doctor Lee. He pictured the terrified look on Doctor Lee's face and let out a slight chuckle.

After what felt like an eternity, dinner time arrived. In the usual manner, Youngtaek left his room and followed everyone to the cafeteria. He received his tray of food and took a seat an empty table. He chugged down some of his beverage before picking at his food with a fork. He wanted to wait until the right time to start feigning his illness. All the other captives needed to be seated and preoccupied so that the nurses would notice him.

Youngtaek lifted his eyes up towards the doors and saw Jaehyun standing discreetly in the hallway, hiding in the shadows. They exchanged eye contact and Jaehyun gave him a simple nod. Youngtaek moved his gaze towards the nurses before he took a deep breathe and threw his upper body forward. His weight made a loud thud against the table, making everyone else jump and gasp in shock. Two nurses that were at the door rushed over to him. hurriedly tapping him and trying to wake him up.

"Are you alright? Can you answer me?" One of the nurses asked frantically as the other tried to lift Youngtaek from the table.

"Ahhh…" Youngtaek groaned as he groggily sat up, "I feel nauseous… and weak."

"Let's get you to the infirmary." The nurse insisted as she and the other nurse helped Youngtaek to his feet.

Slowly, they escorted Youngtaek out of the cafeteria and towards the infirmary. One of the nurses let go of Youngtaek to punch in the passcode. He opened the door and the other nurse walked with Youngtaek to an empty bed. She helped Youngtaek lay down on the bed.

"Can you handle him alone?" The other nurse asked.

"Yeah, you carry on." The nurse insisted before waving the man off.

He left the room and the nurse drew the curtain out, covering Youngtaek so that no one entering the room could see him. She checked his temperature and tried to figure out the root of his sickness. On the outside, Jaehyun waited patiently around the corner for the other nurse to disappear back into the cafeteria before he quietly made his way towards the infirmary.

He entered the room and, practically holding his breath, he walked towards the desk where the landline was located. He gingerly pulled the receiver to his ear and dialled the police. His heart beat grew quicker with every second that passed waiting for a police officer to pick up.

"Hello? This is the Gangnam District Police Department, how may I help you?" A cheerful voice answered and relief washed over Jaehyun.

"Hello, I'm calling to report-"

"What are you doing?"

A familiar voice made a chill run down Jaehyun's spine. His heart rattled against his chest and his body froze, the receiver falling right out of his hand. He anxiously turned his head to see his father standing at the door.


	9. Nine

"N-nothing f-father." Jaehyun stammered as he turned around to face his father, his hands behind his back and his head hung low.

"It didn't look like nothing," Doctor Lee insisted in a threatening voice, a group of nurses tailing into the infirmary behind him, "talk now and you won't regret it later."

Jaehyun remained completely still and silent, except for his irregular breathing and the cold sweat that had appeared on his forehead. The room was agonizingly quiet until Doctor Lee let out a nonchalant sigh.

"Suit yourself then."

As soon as the words left his mouth, Doctor Lee took large, purposeful steps towards Jaehyun, causing his son to back up against the desk in fear. Jaehyun's breathing got louder and quicker once he lifted his head up to see Doctor Lee hovering over him, his knuckles turning white as he gripped the edge of the desk. Doctor Lee grabbed Jaehyun by his hair and began to practically drag him out of the room, the boy yelling out in pain. Doctor Lee mumbled some instructions to one of the nurses but Jaehyun couldn't hear what was said over the sound of his own cries.

Doctor Lee arrived at his office. He shoved Jaehyun through the doorway before entering the room, closing the door behind him. Jaehyun stumbled to the middle of the room, instinctively standing in front of Doctor Lee's desk with his hands at his sides and his head down. The tears continued to roll down his cheeks, but he managed to suppress the sound of his sobs, opting for taking deep, shaky breaths. He had told Youngtaek that he was ready to stand up to his father, but the truth was, he still feared him and what he was capable of doing.

"I didn't think I'd be dealing with this today," Doctor Lee took slow steps towards his desk, his arms folded across his chest, "I thought we moved past this Jaehyun, but clearly you've only gotten worse.

"Remember your friend Joochan?"

Jaehyun's stomach churned at the sound of Joochan's name as he lifted his head up to stare at his father, who was now comfortably seated at his desk. Joochan was Jaehyun's best friend since their childhood. A year prior Joochan had visited Doctor Lee's lab whilst looking for Jaehyun. He stumbled upon the usually locked door that led to the facility and saw everything. Joochan tried to call the police, but the guards caught him first. Doctor Lee did not hesitate to shove him in one of the ice chambers and he died the next day, as expected.

"Judging by your reaction I'm guessing you do," Doctor Lee gave him a sad smile, "I feel sorry for that boy, I always liked him, but he was proof that I do not take it lightly when people try to mess with my plans.

"Now, you're my dear son so obviously I will be more lenient. I'm giving you a chance now to explain to me what did you think you were doing and then I'll decide your punishment."

"Please don't hurt him." Jaehyun said in a hoarse voice, his bloodshot eyes staring directly at his father.

"What was that?" Doctor Lee raised an eyebrow as he stood up from his seat.

"Subject 1304," Jaehyun gulped as he nervously played with a thread on his jacket, "please don't hurt him."

"Oh so I see what's happening here," Doctor Lee let out a loud laugh that startled Jaehyun, "you like this boy and all of a sudden think you can go against your father?

"Wow Jaehyun, I'm proud that my quiet son is making friends," Doctor Lee walked towards the door and gently opened it, "but I don't like when those friends create problems for me."

As if on cue, the nurses from the infirmary moved past the door, rolling a gurney with them. Jaehyun peered closer and gasped when he saw Youngtaek's unconscious body lying on the gurney.

"Youngtaek!" Jaehyun yelled as he ran towards the door.

Before Jaehyun could exit the room, Doctor Lee slammed the door closed and locked it with the passcode. Jaehyun furiously banged on the door with his fists, screaming out Youngtaek's name with tears in his eyes.

"You will come out once I've dealt with your friend." Doctor Lee chuckled menacingly before walking away from the door.


	10. Ten

"Youngtaek! Youngtaek!" Jaehyun shouted as he furiously banged his fist on the door.

His cries just disappeared into the empty corridor. It was no use. He had failed to save Youngtaek. He had failed to stand up to his father and finally end this nightmare once and for all. Jaehyun's hand dropped to his side as his legs gave out and he fell to the floor. He sat down with his legs sprawled out and his back against the door. No more tears fell from his eyes. He felt dried out and empty.

"Jaehyun?" A soft voice called out his name from the other side of the door.

"Donghyun?" Jaehyun couldn't hide the confusion laced in his voice.

"Are you alright?" Donghyun asked and Jaehyun laughed bitterly at the question.

"What are you doing here, Donghyun?" Jaehyun's voice sounded tired and frustrated, "my father will flip out if he catches you."

"He's too busy in the lab," Donghyun sighed before he gulped nervously, "I want to you help you, Jaehyun…"

"What?" Jaehyun propped himself up on his knees and frowned at the door.

"I was always for your father's experiments, I looked up to him and always loved seeing his work whenever I could at the hospital," Donghyun leaned his forehead against the door, "I was so flattered when he wanted me to work with him, but…

"This is not what I expected and I don't agree with what he's doing at all," Donghyun let out a nervous breath, "I've been so scared to do anything but Jaehyun… we need to stop him."

"Well I'm stuck in here and my father is going to kill another person I care about," Jaehyun got up to his feet, "we should've stopped him a long time ago… we're too late."

"It's not too late Jaehyun," Donghyun insisted, "the passcode is under your father's desk mat."

Jaehyun's ears perked up at Donghyun's words before rushing over to Doctor Lee's desk. He pulled the desk mat up and there was a single memo pad with the passcode written down. Jaehyun jogged back to the door and quickly punched the code on the keypad. The door opened to reveal Donghyun standing with his hands at his sides and a nervous look on his face.

"We can do this Donghyun," Jaehyun sighed, trying to convince himself just as much as he was trying to convince Donghyun, "you go call for help… I'm going to confront my father."

"Be careful." Donghyun stated in a worried tone, placing a comforting hand on his arm before hurrying away.

Jaehyun took a deep breath in and out, trying to calm down his racing heart. He began to take long strides that turned into a full on run towards the lab. His mind was occupied with rage and resent for his father. His father had changed drastically over the past year. He wasn't the man Jaehyun grew up loving and admiring. He was a monster. He had this fixation in saving lives, but he was killing people in the process. For Joochan, for Youngtaek, for all the lives Doctor Lee had ruined, Jaehyun had to stop him.

He arrived at the door to the lab. His anxiety was practically nonexistent as he grabbed the door handle and swung the door upon, startling all of Doctor Lee's lab assistants. Doctor Lee on the other hand remained unfazed. He was standing in the middle of the lab in front of the ice chambers, fiddling with something. He took a few seconds ignoring Jaehyun's presence before he eventually turned around to smile at his glaring son.

"I'm guessing you found my passcode," Doctor Lee chuckled as he began to slowly walk towards Jaehyun, "but I'm also guessing you're not here to say sorry for your behavior?"

"I'm tired of this, all of this," Jaehyun spoke bitterly, his eyes filled with pain, "Isn't it ironic that you're doing all of this to save lives, but you've killed more people than you've saved?!"

"This is the future of medicine, Jaehyun," Doctor Lee still had that unsettling smile on his face, "there have been a few bumps but that was bound to happen! Soon the chambers will be perfect and this will all be worth it!"

Doctor Lee moved close enough to Jaehyun to place his hands on his son's shoulders and gave them a gentle squeeze. Jaehyun's eyes drifted towards the door to the morgue that was next to the lab. Joochan was in there. Youngtaek's roommate Sungyoon - whom Jaehyun noticed Youngtaek quickly grew fond of - was in there. So many people were in that morgue and their families didn't even know. Joochan's parents were still convinced their son was missing and would be found soon. Jaehyun looked back at his father and felt sick to his stomach.

"Worth it?" Jaehyun glared and harshly pushed his father's hands away from him, "you killed so many innocent people. You killed my best friend! This has all gone too far!

"I used to admire you, Dad," Jaehyun sighed deeply, "but you're not the righteous innovator you think you are… you're a monster."

Doctor Lee's smile fell from his face. His jaw clenched in anger and he began to take deep breaths in and out. He grabbed hold of Jaehyun's jacket collar and pulled him towards the chamber that was fiddling with. Jaehyun tried to push out of his grip, but his attempts all resulted in failure. Once at the chamber, Doctor Lee shoved Jaehyun towards the edge of the chamber. Jaehyun held onto the edge to keep his balance before lifting his head up.

His eyes widened and his heart began to race as he saw Youngtaek lying in the chamber, completely unconscious. Fortunately the chamber hadn't been turned on yet.

"Youngtaek!" Jaehyun called out as he shook Youngtaek by his shoulders, trying to wake him up.

"Ah my son is so pathetic," Doctor Lee chuckled and Jaehyun turned around to face him again, "you're making all of this fuss over a boy you barely know?"

"You're a monster!" Jaehyun yelled as he shoved his father, Doctor Lee stumbling backwards, shocked by his son's actions.

Doctor Lee stared calmly at the ground, which irked Jaehyun. He had no idea what was going through his father's head or what he was planning to do next. Doctor Lee lifted his head up and gave Jaehyun a smile.

"Last chance Jaehyun," Doctor Lee spoke in a gentle voice as he moved back towards Jaehyun, "apologize and stop all this nonsense, how about that?"

"Fuck you." Jaehyun spat.

Jaehyun could practically see the anger rush to Doctor Lee's face. He grabbed Jaehyun by the hair and flung him against one of the empty ice chambers. Jaehyun groaned, rubbing his aching head. Doctor Lee hovered over Jaehyun before wrapping his hands around his neck, applying pressure as Jaehyun gasped for air.

"I am going to change the world!" Doctor Lee screamed as he repeatedly banged Jaehyun's head against the chamber, "I am going to save lives!"

Youngtaek's eyes fluttered open and he immediately began to panic upon hearing the commotion. He frivolously sat up in the chamber and tried to rush towards Jaehyun before he was flocked by some of the lab assistants, trying to keep him down. Jaehyun was slowly losing consciousness, the blows leading to blood gushing down the back and side of his head.

"Jaehyun!" Youngtaek cried out and Doctor Lee halted his actions.

Doctor Lee tilted his head to smile sadistically at Youngtaek before getting up to his feet. He walked over to Youngtaek, waving the lab assistants away. The lab assistants all returned to their stations far away from the chambers and Doctor Lee stood right in front of Youngtaek, the smile never leaving his face.

"It's over Youngtaek," Doctor Lee shrugged, patting Youngtaek's head, "Jaehyun won't be saving you any time soon, rather just accept your fate."

Youngtaek remained silent, glaring at Doctor Lee, before grabbing his arm and pulling him harshly. Doctor Lee lost his balance and stumbled into the ice chamber, landing right next to Youngtaek. Youngtaek slithered himself out of the way to hover over Doctor Lee. He was about hit him, but was stopped by the lab assistants pulling him out of the chamber. Out of desperation, Youngtaek kicked the main switch and the chamber door closed, automatically sealing shut. The chamber started to ice up as Doctor Lee screamed for help, frantically banging his fists against the plastic door.

The lab assistants quickly rushed to his aid, trying to find a way to get him out or turn the chamber off. It was no use though. The chamber, like always, was set for 24 hours and there was no way to stop it. Youngtaek ran towards where Jaehyun was still lying against the other chamber, his eyes hooded and blood staining his shirt.

"Jaehyun, you have to stay awake!" Youngtaek pleaded as tears began to brim his eyes and he held Jaehyun close to him, "keep your eyes open!"

Youngtaek tried desperately to keep Jaehyun awake, watching as he stayed barely conscious, that he almost didn't notice when the door swung open and in walked Donghyun followed by a crowd of police officers. It was as though time stopped. Youngtaek's ears felt clogged, like he was underwater, as he watched the room turn into more chaos. Jaehyun's body was slipped out of his arms by a pair of paramedics before he too was escorted out of the lab.

He held onto the paramedic as they walked up the flight of stairs and into Doctor Lee's publicly known lab. They existed the front doors and, for the first time in almost a week, Youngtaek the wind against his face. He didn't know whether it was his deteriorating physical health or just overwhelming emotions, but at that moment his legs gave out and he lost consciousness.


	11. End

"How are you feeling, Youngtaek?" The receptionist asked with a smile as she took the visitor's form from him.

"Much better, thanks." Youngtaek smiled back before making his way towards the Intensive Care Unit.

It had been around a month since Youngtaek escaped the facility. The police had managed to forcefully open the ice chamber and arrest Doctor Lee alongside all his nurses, lab assistants and security guards. Donghyun had received a more lenient sentence considering he was the one to call the cops. The remaining captives went back to their normal lives while sad news had to be beared to the families of the deceased. Youngtaek became close with Sungyoon's family. They were just as warm and positive as he was.

Youngtaek entered the ICU and greeted the doctor whom he had become accustomed to, granted he made sure to visit every single day for the last month.

"You really never miss a day." The doctor chuckled.

"How is he today?"

"He's doing alright," the doctor nodded as he looked back at the glass window, "he's breathing on his own now which is a good sign, all we can do is just wait for him to wake up."

Youngtaek nodded with a small smile. The doctor returned the smile, giving him a comforting pat on the shoulder before walking away. Youngtaek slowly walked towards the glass window and peered inside to see Jaehyun tucked in his hospital bed with his eyes closed and a bandage wrapped around his head, the same position he had been in for a month.

"You better wake up soon," Youngtaek whispered against the glass, "I don't want to be all old until I can tell you fuck you for messing up my life but then thank you for saving me.

"Also when you wake up, don't you think we should have a do-over of our date?"

Youngtaek smiled softly when he saw Jaehyun's fingers, that were rested his side, twitch slightly.

"I'll take that as a yes."


End file.
